Palacio de Cristal del Retiro (Madrid)

Crystal Palace is a glass and metal structure, designed by Ricardo Velázquez Bosco, located in the Retiro Park in Madrid, Community of Madrid, Spain.

It was built in 1887 for the General Exposition of the Philippine Islands, and is a prominent example of glass and iron architecture in Madrid. Today it is one of the headquarters of the Reina Sofía Museum.

This Palace was designed to provide an ideal environment for the exhibition of tropical plants during the General Exposition of the Philippine Islands of 1887. Its glass and metal structure not only allowed an abundant entry of natural light, but also maintained a controlled climate within the building, crucial for the exotic species it housed. The layout of its internal spaces and the large central dome facilitated the viewing and care of aquatic plants and tropical vegetation, highlighting its primary function as a greenhouse. In addition, the artificial lake surrounding the building contributes to recreating a natural environment conducive to plant growth.

The Palacio de Cristal, in the shape of a Greek cross, is made almost entirely of glass set in an iron framework on a brick base, which is decorated with ceramics. The cast-iron frame was manufactured in Bilbao.

Its cupola makes the structure over 22 metres high. When it was erected, glass and iron construction on a large scale was already to be seen in Madrid at Delicias station (1880), the work of a French architect; however, the curved architecture of the Palacio de Cristal is more comparable to the techniques pioneered by the British architects Joseph Paxton (who was responsible for London’s Crystal Palace) and Decimus Burton (who was responsible for the Palm House at Kew Gardens). The Palacio de Cristal was, alongside the Pabellón Central, one of the main venues of the 1887 Philippines Exposition.

The Crystal Palace belongs to the Reina Sofía Museum, and is one of its temporary exposition centres together with Velázquez Palace.